With a dust storm sweeping across the UAE, the National Centre of Meteorology (NCM) released a stunning video that shows Abu Dhabi going from clear skies to completely disappearing in an instant.
Watch here:
Visibility as a result of the dust storm has dropped to 1,000 meters in multiple areas in Abu Dhabi, with Dubai seeming even more severe at the moment, according to multiple reports.
The good news is that the dust is planned to steadily decrease in most areas in the country, so clear skies should be back soon.
Forecasters predicted that the dusty weather conditions would hit the UAE earlier today, with a decrease in temperatures in the subsequent days coming as a result.
It should also remain windy across the UAE, with speeds set to reach 45 km/h.
Other countries in the UAE have been hit too, with Kuwait and Iraq also affected by the growing dust storms.
“In this region, we encounter dust storms frequently and people usually associate dust with cars covered with dirt or reduced visibility,” Cecile Guieu, a visiting scientist at New York University Abu Dhabi’s Centre for Prototype Climate Modelling, told The National recently.
“Dust contains nutrients and these small particles have a very positive impact for microscopic plant-like organisms called phytoplankton that live in the ocean.”
New technology has also been implemented to properly observe and manage the storms.
“This is a turning point in the region’s ability to properly manage the impacts of dust storms. With access to an accurate forecast of dust events and sandstorms, people can better prepare for them,” Dr Hosni Ghedira, director of the Research Centre for Renewable Energy Mapping and Assessment and professor of practice at Masdar Institute, said at the time.